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Saturday, 27 September 2014

Going wild with Caorunn Gin

In
which G.M. Norton joins a group of epicurean adventurers for a journey into the
unknown.

One might suppose that I am partial to a gin or three. If you have jumped to that conclusion about me, I
must congratulate you and confirm that you are indeed correct.

Rowan berries form the very soul of Caorunn Gin

The people at Caorunn Gin must have made the same accurate
assumption as they were kind enough to invite me on a little foraging
expedition, with the promise of cocktails and lunch afterwards. Never one to
look a gift horse in the mouth, I accepted their offer with gusto.

So, why the invite to go foraging? Well, as part of Caorunn Gin’s Forage to Glass initiative,
they have been working with watering holes to discover wild ingredients to help
create unique and tasty cocktails. After a few successful foraging outings with
local bartenders at Lawn Club and Elixir, they turned their attention to people
interested in drinking them, offering them the chance to get at one with nature too.

An attempt at 'street photography'

So, one wet and chilly morning, I travelled to the
meeting place, 22 Redbank in Manchester where I was welcomed with warm smiles
and a hot beverage. It was reminiscent of a rather agreeable sitting room with
Chesterfields and a resplendent rug.

A rather agreeable sitting room

I recognised a few of my fellow adventurers also
making the trip. Exchanging in a little conversation, our horseless carriage (a
minibus) eventually pulled up to take us to a mystery foraging location.

Mystery Foraging Location

Upon arriving at said mystery foraging location, we
were introduced to Mr. David Winnard from Discover the Wild, a foraging expert who had bravely agreed
to lead the rabble. An absolute brick of a chap, it was simply fascinating to
hear him talk about a subject that was very close to his heart. Literally an
expert in his field, Mr Winnard explained that we would be seeking out the five
botanicals that make up Caorunn Gin - rowan berry,
bog myrtle, heather, dandelion leaf and coul blush apple.

Foraging expert extraordinaire

Excitingly, we were all asked to keep the mystery
foraging location a secret. It soon transpired that one of the botanicals, the
splendidly named bog myrtle, is extremely rare in the local area. So, to
prevent pesky people with a penchant for plants from discovering its
whereabouts, all I can you is that the mystery foraging location is not at 22
Redbank.

Cravat in the country

As I was venturing into the great outdoors, I
wrapped myself up in tweed. After all, a well-dressed Englishman will set the
standards of good taste, where’er he may roam.

Before we had even left the car park, we were
encouraged to pick berries from a bramble bush. Very tasty they were too!

Berry tasty

The first of the five botanicals we were led towards was
the humble dandelion, which provides the herbal notes of the gin. Quite
quickly, we ticked off our second botanical – the apple. Although not of the
coul blush variety, it was an apple nonetheless. I must confess, without it
being pointed out, I would never have spotted the apple trees.

Welcome to the leafy glade

After making a mental note of its location for
future cider-making adventures, we moved onto muddier parts before finding our third
botanical of the day, the rowan berry. These are absolutely everywhere it
seems! A lovely red colour, they have a pentagram stamped on their bottoms,
giving it a superstitious quality. The rowan berry gives Caorunn its name as
Caorunn is Gaelic for rowan. Once cooked, they make a rather scrumptious
jelly.

Beautiful heather

Finding our foraging feet, we were soon amongst the
familiar sight of heather. Just beautiful. It was obviously there to distract
people from the fifth and final botanical nestled quite close by, the now infamous
bog myrtle.

Bog myrtle for the lady?

Before we left the secret foraging location, we also
had the chance to find rose hips, elderberries and sloes.

Making sloe gin since 1828

As our transportation was yet to arrive, we stopped by a nearby drinking tavern. After consuming a tankard of Timothy Taylor’s finest, we were on our way back to Manchester’s Lawn Club for a spot of lunch and a couple of these rather delicious Wild Bramble cocktails. ﻿﻿

Tasty concoction

﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿It was a real adventure and it was a pleasure to be
in the company of our guide, Mr. Winnard.

Caorunn Gin is a tasty drop, I must say. Especially
with a slice of apple.

Since my trip into the wild, I’ve since returned to
the mystery foraging location to collect blackberries to go into a homemade
crumble. The experience has quite literally opened my eyes – I’m constantly
exploring my surroundings with greater interest to see what tasty treats are
just waiting for me to take home.

Rowan berries and blackberries

Thanks awfully to Caorunn Gin, David Winnard from
Discover the Wild and Dave Barber from 22 Redbank for a memorable excursion. What
a jolly fine outing!

Regular as clockwork

Best Vintage Blog in the UK 2014

Manchester's Best Vintage Lifestyle Blog 2013

What-ho!

G.M. Norton is an aspiring English gentleman. Follow
him as he embarks on a journey befitting fellow quest seekers Sir
Galahad and Mr. Phileas Fogg in search of his holy grail - a gentlemanly
existence. Prepare to dance with death and fox-trot your life away as
he regales you with tales of sartorial splendour, jolly japes and
dastardly deeds. A rip-roaring adventure awaits.